Food is not always something that you put in your mouth and eat!

Over the past couple of years, the chicken industry has attracted many new immigrants into the Delmarva Peninsula and encouraged the building of chicken warehouses on mega sized zero land operations. Monetary “incentive bonuses” offered by companies to those caught up in the building frenzy are an added inducement. The zero land operations are chicken warehouses, built from property line to property line, leaving no land unused to spread the exorbitant amount of waste that’s produced by theses facilities.

The industry expansion is so huge that state cost share programs are broke. The cost share programs, funded by taxpayers, were supposed to clean up the industrial waste left behind by the industry and that is polluting the waters of the Chesapeake. The programs were never designed to support manure disposal from the large expansion that has been allowed to occur thusly utilizing all of the funds long before all of the mega operations can tap into them. It has gotten so bad that the Maryland Department of Environment is bypassing regulations and allowing the mega structures to be built without the normally required manure disposal plans as well as the dead chicken disposal requirements. There are no taxpayer dollars left to fund adherence of the regulations before the chicken warehouses can be built.

The warehouses, one building being as large as 43,500 square feet in size housing as many as 49,500 chickens each flock, are not the norm that we are used to seeing on the peninsula. Some of the operations contain up to 50 of these warehouses. These are not farms they are part of the mass production assembly line in order to, as the industry claims, feed the world. Unfortunately, the world only takes care of the end product, the highly processed cheap chicken meat, leaving all of the waste behind for good old American taxpayers to foot the bill for cleanup. Not only do we fund the waste cleanup, we also fund the process of dead chicken disposal.

Powers that be in counties on the peninsula have wholeheartedly welcomed the expansion in spite of loud objections voiced by residents. No consideration has been given to environmental and public health, and water and land, issues raised or to the plain ordinary fact that every U.S. citizen has the right of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

There are not very many happy citizens who have had these warehouses dropped into their communities denying them the right to simple enjoyment of their property. Many cannot go outside of their homes without suffering the stench, ammonia emissions, dust, flies, and many other offensive and unhealthy by-products produced from these mega operations.

Recently it was brought to my attention that the long-time contract chicken farmers in our communities are starting to feel the heat from the industry expansion. Demands of upgrades to existing chicken housing or building of new warehouses is the first step to driving these farmers out of business. It’s standard operating procedure by industry to accommodate the new mega operations that are now online and quite frankly the long-time farms that have supported the industry for many years are no longer needed. Get big or get out is the usual message.

Huge investments, including putting the entire homestead on the line, were made by the long-time farmers. Many of them have been on the land for generations. Existing contract chicken farmers will either have to go back to their local lending institution for funds that will increase existing mortgages enabling them to adhere to industry demands or they can opt out of the demands and lose the contract, and in turn lose the farm. There is no recourse for promises made in the past by industry. Not much of a choice for those who’ve already invested millions, if not billions, in the industry. Not a very nice thank you for supporting the companies!

People in wealthy communities that have seen proposed plans for a next-door neighbor mega chicken operation stopped it in its tracks by offering a higher price for the land to be sold. Ironically a neighbor in that same community is none other than the long-time leader of the Delmarva Poultry Industry Inc. (DPI), a local industry trade union. I personally have seen and heard this very same fearless leader expound on the virtues of the industry expansion, convincing the powers that be to ignore the citizens objections.

What I don’t understand is why this person didn’t want a mega chicken warehouse community next door. Especially since part of the expounding referred to a “good neighbor policy” written by the trade union. Humorously, or maybe not, the DPI “Good Neighbor Policy” is a waste of good paper. It’s not enforceable. The trade union has no business or influence in contracts made between chicken companies and independent contract farmers. Unfortunately, our illustrious officials believed that the useless policy solved any concerns and was somehow an insurance of community happiness.

It remains to be seen where the disastrous consequences from the industry expansion will end. Much ado has been made by the powers that be about dollars and cents generated. Recently I heard one of our illustrious local congressional members say it all supports a “healthy business climate in Maryland”. No mention was made about supporting the existing business climate or supporting public and environmental health for our communities. I think that these types of comments pretty well sum up the fact that chickens and dollars are much more important than people.

In a recent community meeting, I was asked if I’m an activist or an advocate. My immediate answer was that I’m an advocate. Afterwards I pondered my answer because the word activist has always been less than desirable to me.

Over the past 25 years, I’ve often been called an activist and it was a description used to dismiss my work as being “radical”. I believe the word was used in the context as being an insult and it invoked a picture of being a radical or militant person.

I think that most of us can agree that radical or militant behavior is less than desirable and is dismissed by many, putting the actions down to someone who is fanatical. Radical or militant is often associated with violence an extreme and undesirable direction to follow. I certainly don’t condone it and I believe that violence begets violence.

Over the past couple of years, a huge building binge of chicken warehouses by the poultry industry on the Delmarva Peninsula has invoked division within our communities. This is what my conversation was about when it came down to the question of advocate or activist. My involvement in the issues, is supporting what the community interest are and their interest was decided by those affected. This is what defines advocacy or activism.

On the other hand, there are a few activists involved in the issues. I say activists because involvement came from an already decided campaign coming from somewhere other than the community and represented concerns other than decisions made within the community. Forcing the will of others than those affected, never works, and is doomed from the beginning.

Representing non-profit organizations, activist have a defined campaign in mind long before they disperse into communities. I say this because most often funding for campaigns come from private foundations or individuals. Most of us within the non-profit world who have ever applied for funding know that goals are decided for a specified amount of time and are for specific objectives. The funds applied for are granted before the issues are defined by communities.

Any who’ve worked on any of the issues surrounding the poultry industry know that there are several factions within the community and most often those different factions don’t agree because they have differing concerns. Finding the common thread within the community and moving forward with agreed upon concerns are the goals of an advocate and it goes a long way toward developing common allies within the community. An alliance, if you will!

Attempts to bring together differing factions are sorely hampered by activists because they bring a previously decided campaign to the table which is often different than anything within the individual communities. This becomes a weapon for industry to use and its representatives can often be heard saying that these activists have a hidden agenda which brings about doubt and further divides communities.

According to the dictionary the following applies –

Advocate – one who supports or promotes the interests of a cause or group

Advocacy – the act or process of supporting a cause or proposal

Activist – one who campaigns to bring about political or social change

Activism – the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change

It’s a fine line between the two words, definition wise. However, understanding the difference between supporting or promoting (advocate) and a decided campaign (activist) easily defines the difference between the two. One could say that actions speak louder than words!

Providing assistance to communities in efforts to address its issues within is essential to success. Telling communities what it’s issues are and how it will address those issues won’t result in positive outcomes.

A recent undercover video taken by Direct Action Everywhere and released on the Now This facebook page shows the worst of the worst about hens involved in egg laying.

The video made me sick and I’ve a message for industrial agriculture – “clean up your act”. The conditions of the hens and the environment they are living in are horrific. It’s actors such as this that make it hard for those of us who don’t even think about animal husbandry being such as what is revealed in the video. Animal agriculture is going to have to start standing up and condemning these types of practices and behaviors. Don’t make excuses, own it, and fix it!

The hard truth and what makes the point of rubber stamping for humane practices an armed weapon for those opposed to animal agriculture is that this particular farm is “Certified Humane”, a project of Humane Farm Animal Care. According to the organizations website, the program certifies products from farm animals that meet program standards related to practices required in the raising of the animals. Farms and ranches are monitored annually and may use the Certified Humane Raised and Handled® logo. Charges levied are to cover inspections and program costs which include promotional materials which help promote the products of the producers that are Certified Humane®. Trust me folks, the fees applied aren’t cheap and certification predominately include large numbers of animals produced.

The organization has a “Humane Farm Animal Care Scientific Committee”, presumably who develop the standards that farmers and ranchers must meet for certification. The Committee has some heavy hitters participating on it and I must wonder, what in the world they were thinking when they lent their names to something that doesn’t even come close to the definition of “humane practices”.

I can’t continue without describing the organization responsible for the undercover video, Direct Action Everywhere, is a network of animal rights activists claiming chapters in 160 cities in over 30 countries. The organization, developed in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2013. It operates on the theory of “speciesism”.

Getting Educated about Speciesism

I’m not big on giving out labels or definitive categories so I had to do some research on this one. The term delves deeply into the realm of philosophy. According to Wikipedia speciesism is a prejudice similar to racism or sexism, in that the treatment of individuals is predicated on group membership and morally irrelevant physical differences. Broadly speaking in the world of animal activism it means the exclusion of all nonhuman animals from the rights, freedoms, and protections afforded to humans. June 5 is considered to be World Day Against Speciesism. Who knew?

Without delving too deep into the topic of speciesism, it appears to me that it means every living thing is equal and has equal rights, no matter human or non-human. I’m assuming if you don’t believe in this equality or you behave against the principal theory you are akin to a racist or sexist. I dunno, sounds good!

Of course agenda motivation is the driving force behind the video, why else would it be undercover? Was it for the purpose of exposing Humane Farm Animal Care and name lending to a rubber stamping of the “Certified Humane” label? Was it to expose the bad behavior of industrial agriculture? Or was it a push toward the public to support veganism and animal rights? I think it’s all of the above.

On the other hand, what can be the excuses from industrial agriculture. Historically industry will repeat all of the things listed above and describe the people taking the video as terrorists. They’ll say that the particular farm and the conditions revealed wasn’t like that when it was audited for humane standards and certification. My question would be, what changed in the farming practices between the standards audit and everyday practices? Is it business as usual except when the humane farm animal standards audit is conducted?

No matter what your belief about what you eat, what is revealed in the undercover video is just plain wrong. It doesn’t take a room full of philosophers or theorizers to figure it out. You decide!

How much cost is too much cost when ensuring public health and safety in the air that we breath? Is it more important to protect an unsustainable industry than to ensure and sustain the health and wellness of communities and citizens within in the State? These are the questions we should be asking and finding answers to.

Maryland Senate Bill 773, The Community Healthy Air Act, is a call upon the State of Maryland to direct the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) to assess the Departments compliance of State and Federal laws and regulations of air quality. It also requires MDE to assess whether certain Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation’s (CAFO) are complying with same said laws and regulations.

The environmental assessment requires that MDE identify all air pollutants emitted from CAFO operations within the State, collecting data from CAFO operations in accordance with an air monitoring program implemented by MDE, identify all State and Federal laws and regulations related to air pollutant emissions that apply, identify any specific exemptions or exceptions to State or Federal laws and regulations related to air pollutant emissions from CAFO operations within the State, and requires MDE to report to the General Assembly of Maryland on or before October 1, 2018. The report shall include emissions of air pollutants from CAFO’s and MDE’s compliance and the compliance of CAFO’s in the State, with State and Federal air quality laws and regulations including the findings of the environmental assessment required.

In other words, folks, MDE will assess the Departments compliance of State and Federal laws regulations related to air pollutant emissions from CAFO’s within the State. The Department will assess air pollutant emissions from CAFO’s within the State and compliance with the same laws and regulations and will monitor and identify air pollutant emissions from CAFO’s within the State.

Maryland SB 773 is straight forward in directing MDE to conduct a public health assessment, or impact, study, if you will, related to emissions of air pollutants from CAFO’s.

Opposition to the legislation is coming from the chicken industry. The industry trade union, Delmarva Poultry Industry Inc. (DPI), is leading the charge with a news release using the same old tired tactics of opposition that are put forth in a suggestive and argumentative manner.

“This could impact our chicken growers if MDE tries to force its way onto farms to set up monitoring stations. It could lead to more state regulation for how growers operate their chicken houses”, says DPI. DPI doesn’t own any chicken growers or farms. It’s amazing how the trade union is the face that shows up in the State Capitol telling legislators it represents farmers. Fomenting fear and unrest within the farming community is one of the same old and tired tactics I’m speaking of. The government is going to force its way onto your farm and take over. It will direct you how to run your farm. This is what DPI is essentially saying to farmers.

Spouting the argument of “gathering scientifically valid and accurate data” is another old and tired tactic put forth by DPI. In the past, the trade union has gone as far as calling peer reviewed scientific research conducted by researchers with doctorate degrees, “BUNK”. DPI should be thankful for SB 773 as it will ensure that valid and accurate data will be collected by the State. Unless, of course, DPI doesn’t want the public to know what air pollutant emissions are spewing from those CAFO’s the industry desperately needs.

On the Eastern Shore of Maryland, particularly in the lower counties, a building explosion of CAFO’s the size of warehouses with as many as 24 on one piece of land, can be found dotting the landscape. Communities have raised concerns about the “in your face” location of the warehouses, some can be as close as 50 feet from a neighbor’s property line. DPI tells county legislators that it has a “Good Neighbor Policy” for farmers to follow and that is good enough for the local “powers that be” allowing for slack County building and zoning regulations despite the fact that the DPI “Good Neighbor Policy” is an unenforceable document that is useless. The document is something that was made up by an industry trade union that isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.

Further argument against SB 773 coming from the “industry denier,” DPI, is that “this bill is being pushed by a handful of persons in Wicomico County who do not want chicken houses built and operated in an be agricultural areas of the county. They are working with professional advocates not friendly toward the chicken industry. This could be part of their efforts to close down the chicken industry. Interestingly, the legislative sponsors are from Montgomery and Prince George’s County and Baltimore City.”

More of the same old tired tactics is to first minimize those in the communities and infer that outsiders are running the show with a hidden agenda of closing down the industry. With the Chesapeake Bay separating the Eastern Shore of Maryland from the main land, locals call those people as being from “across the bay”. What is interesting about the SB 773 legislative sponsors being from “across the bay”, is the question of why the legislators from the Eastern Shore of Maryland have historically not sponsored, and have opposed, any legislation concerning the chicken industry unless, of course, it’s legislation giving away taxpayer dollars to sustain the industry. Corporate welfare is on the agenda for Eastern Shore legislators.

Personally, I’ve never seen Eastern Shore legislators take a stand for citizens within the community and they’ve ignored the inalienable rights of citizens to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. There aren’t many citizens out there celebrating with happiness when those huge fans in the chicken warehouses come on, emitting lord knows what, and permeating the air in communities with the stench and particulate matter. Industry claims the “right to farm” however if I’m not mistaken, every American citizen was granted “inalienable rights” on July 4th, 1776 with the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

Something is very wrong with this picture. Somewhere along the line, the communities of the Eastern Shore of Maryland have become less than chickens. Tomorrow, February 28th, 2017, a Maryland Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee hearing will take place in Annapolis at 1:00 PM. We will see how important the public health and welfare of our communities are to the State of Maryland. Chickens don’t pay taxes or vote!

As I watched the news this morning and heard the comments made by the so-called pundits, I realized that I’d heard nothing positive, good, happy, or just straight news. The morning shows were quite a downer with lots of moaning and groaning as well as complaints. I’m so ready to see and hear the end of the election and political mess, NO MORE! It’s as if all have a glass that’s half empty rather than half full. Gosh, does anyone have anything positive or nice to say?

Thanksgiving is upon us and it’s supposed to be a time of family and friends, sharing, caring, and joy. It’s my favorite holiday and I’m truly thankful for all in my life. I always say, “it could be a lot worse”. If that thought doesn’t straighten up the doom-sayers, I’m at a loss to say what will.

I enjoy cooking Thanksgiving dinner with the scents of turkey roasting, stuffing being made, and scented candles throughout the house. Surrounded by family and friends is the best! I also enjoy eating the dinner, way too much, until I’m to the point of being stuffed. I’m always thankful for the farmers and workers who made the food possible. I do think about the cost of producing the food and I don’t mean the price of the food.

What do I mean? I think that in today’s, day and age, most never think about where and how the food appeared on their dinner tables nor do they care. It’s just there! There are many “invisible people” along the way, finger prints on your food, if you will, that are never seen or thought about.

Producing food is hard work. Starting on the farms where everything is grown or raised many don’t realize the efforts made toward their enjoyment. The farmer has invested much time, energy, and care, not to mention cost, in bringing consumers the food that they eat. Being a farmer myself, I still give thanks to my colleagues. I know what’s been invested along the way of growing or raising food. I also know the little thanks that are expressed to the farmer for the job that they do. One of the most enjoyable things, to me, is when a customer says thank you for doing what you do.

Although I hate to contribute to the “downers list of wrong”, I must say that the first time that I was chatting with middle school kids during a presentation and asked “do you know where your food comes from” and I heard the answer “from the store” I was so disappointed. Somewhere along the way, a disconnect to food has occurred. Farmers have become the invisible thread in the fabric of society.

Many efforts are put forth in teaching our young about food however most of the teachings are about what food should or shouldn’t be part of the daily diet. While there is nothing wrong with those teaching’s, it’s sad, at least to me, that our young don’t know the origins of the food they eat. My thoughts about this are more than likely considered to be “old school” by many, but I think that appreciation of something that sustains daily growth, and life, should be identified and known.

This year as you sit down to Thanksgiving dinner, do yourself a favor. Initiate conversation about the food on the table. As each exclaims the “oh, this is so good”, over their favorites, talk about the origins of the food. Pass down through the generations your knowledge about the food and teach the young one’s appreciation of what’s on their dinner plates. For instance, do they know that a yam/sweet potato grows underground or that the grain that made the bread crumbs or cubes for stuffing grows above ground? Give special thanks to the farmers because without them, no one would be enjoying Thanksgiving dinner.

Many publications, information, stories, etc. cross my desk each morning. So many in fact, that it’s hard to go through all of them before the end of the day. After reading several hoopla stories about two global food service companies committing to a policy of sourcing slower growing breeds of chickens by 2024 induced my “need to know” exactly what it all meant.

I’ve often talked about the genetic mixing of breeds of chickens to achieve a product that performs to company desires. With chickens, which I’m overly familiar, I’ve seen what the genetic blending produces. Animal welfare concerns are the furthest desire on the company list of traits to achieve.

The two global food service companies, Compass Group USA, based in Charlotte, NC, and Aramark based on Philadelphia, PA, are the latest to lay claim to animal welfare policy. Both companies have agreed to adhere to the Global Animal Partnership (GAP) standards, a non-profit, 5-step animal welfare certification program.

I was elated to read that, finally, genetics and the relationship to animal welfare would be a goal for buyers of industrial related chicken production. Often, genetics mixing is designed with rapid growth, larger breast, and improved rates of feed conversion (feed cost versus pounds of meat raised) in mind. How fast can we grow a chicken at the lowest cost is the industry mantra.

Witnessing rapid growth, first hand, that often resulted in heart attacks because internal organs couldn’t keep up with the growth of the chicken and skeletal structure not keeping pace with growth, resulting in broken bones, mostly legs, was one of the main reasons I became disenchanted with industrial contract farming. Thus, my elation over genetics being addressed in the massive production of chickens.

Although, I thought, that the year 2024 was a lengthy amount of time to achieve the goals of sourcing slower growing chickens, the thought of standards addressing the genetic mixing issue was far more important. I figured that such large food service companies would need time to adapt and secure sources that could meet the standards.

I went to the GAP website to review the standards and my bubble burst! The actual standards addressing genetics and slower growing birds has yet to be developed. The organization intends to have the standards by 2024. I thought to myself, how could any company, much less global ones, commit to something that hasn’t been developed. Much can happen and change in 8 years.

It occurred to me that maybe I was missing something because the whole announcement made no sense. Digging deeper, I found that I hadn’t missed anything. I was so disappointed because well-known organizations quoted in the Aramark press release, such as the Human Society of the United States (HSUS) and Compassion In World Farming (CIWF) are celebrating the announcement.

The executive director of GAP, Anne Malleau, is quoted as saying “As a global leader in farm animal welfare, GAP is proud to see a company like Aramark move toward changes that could benefit thousands of animals every year. Aramark knows that consumers increasingly demand that farm animals are raised with a higher quality of life. They’re looking for transparency and certification they can trust.”

GAP, first created by Whole Foods (WFM), was launched in 2008 in the UK, as a pilot Step Rated Program at its flagship store in London, England. Implementing an independent organization owning and developing a farm animal welfare certification program was the brainchild of WFM’s co-CEO John Mackey who felt that a greater impact could be developed internationally. From that idea, GAP was created.

WFM has also committed to GAP’s future standards for chicken genetics. Now I know folks, for a fact, that WFM is committed to farm animal welfare having sold eggs to several of the company’s stores. To get my product on store shelves, I had several farm visits from company representatives prior to entering the market.

However, I must say that I didn’t understand WFM’s commitment to a non-existent standard any more than I didn’t understand all the other participant’s commitments. Don’t get me wrong folks, I applaud all efforts to improve farm animal welfare. If all parties involved fulfill their commitments 8 years from now, it will indeed be wonderful.

It all started to make sense when I found that HSUS, CIWF, and WFM hold seats on the Board of Directors of GAP. It appears to me that all will have a hand in developing the standards for acceptable chicken genetics for GAP. That’s all fine and good but why the emphasis on a proclaimed “historical” announcement for something that won’t make history for 8 more years?

A few months ago, the same type of announcement was made by Perdue, and lauded by the same animal welfare parties. The issue of genetics was announced as Perdue MAY consider slower growing breeds of chickens. MAY is the operative word, not WILL! Consumers are now swearing that Perdue has switched to slower growing breeds of chickens and are boosting company sales for something that is smoke and mirrors.

I’m still confounded and moves such as this one will surely confuse consumers further than they already are. It’s inherent upon those of us who advocate for farm animal welfare and good husbandry practices to make certifications, labels, and claims as simplistic as possible for consumers. Transparency, honesty, and appearances are important. Slick moves have no room in efforts by all who are working toward change in production of food animals. Once trust is lost it’s hardly ever regained!

Denial of bathroom use at forefront of poultry worker complaints

A friend sent me a post from the U.S. Department of Labor blog to settle a friendly dispute over poultry processing works rights and free access to the bathroom. I was adamant in my belief that poultry workers had “at need access” in using a bathroom because this same abuse was fought at least 15 years ago by a community organization I worked for, the Delmarva Poultry Justice Alliance (DPJA). I’m going back to the late 1990’s – early 2000’s.

At that time the basic right of workers using a bathroom was denied because it would slow down or stop the processing line. To do so would cost the company dollars and in their greed stopping the line was not an option.

I was shocked to learn that people were denied use of the bathroom and I couldn’t fathom urinating on one’s self. I doubt that most of us could identify with such conditions, let alone being the one to say “no you can’t use the bathroom”. Unfortunately, my tenure as the executive director of DPJA brought many such shocks, and not to discount other serious issues, right now, I’m taking about using the bathroom.

No poultry company on the Delmarva Peninsula was immune from the complaints made by their workers. Stories from the workers encompassed many complaints such as urinating on their selves, pregnant workers being denied bathroom use as needed, and break time lines for bathroom use so long that the ten minutes allowed for a break were eaten up just standing in line waiting to use a toilet.

From the industry point of view, excuses were made such as workers abused bathroom breaks, no alternate or fill in workers were available to replace a worker leaving the line, and they get a ten-minute break to use the bathroom. Company flat out denial of worker complaints was the most used response.

Any worker who complained to supervisors or company powers that be, very quickly found their selves out the door. As most workers were undocumented immigrants, fear of reprisals kept them quiet. From my point of view I found it as being a method of control and exploitation.

As a matter of fact, DPJA lead a protest in Georgetown, DE, in front of one Delmarva poultry processing plant to deliver a letter to the company owner as an informational method of complaints by workers for abuses occurring inside the plant. The protest involved community members, church leaders, workers, and alliance members. Denial of bathroom use was one of the worker’s complaints. Afterwards workers reported that some things had changed and that those abusing basic human rights for workers were no longer there.

Fast forward to 2016

From all indications and as much as I hate to say it, my friend is correct. I have to concede to her as the winner of our debate. What a hollow victory! It boggles my mind to think that the very same issue is once again at the forefront of poultry processing plant worker’s complaints. Did industry learn nothing or is it a matter of continuing with a bad legacy until caught? I’m not particularly fond of the saying, “history repeats itself”, especially when it is a not so good history.

“For some workers, a simple trip to the bathroom could result in the loss of a job. Poultry-processing workers are sometimes disciplined for taking bathroom breaks while at work because there is no one available to fill in for them if they step away from the production line. Some workers have reported that they wear diapers and restrict liquid intake in an effort to avoid using the bathroom. No one should have to work under these conditions. All workers have a right to a safe workplace, and that includes access to readily available sanitary restroom facilities on the job. Poultry processing is one of the most dangerous industries in the United States, and readily accessible restrooms are only one of many problems that workers in this industry face.” Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Although this blog post was written back in July 2016, it’s relevant to the debate between my friend and I. She further burst my bubble with a link to a 2015 report published by Oxfam America. After reading it I thought to myself that nothing has changed. Over all of the time that passed between my employment at DPJA to the 2015 Oxfam report the simple basic human right of using the bathroom is being denied by employers in the poultry industry.

Coming from a common sense point of view, it’s obvious that denial of bathroom use is blatant and those practicing the behavior are unashamed. I think it takes a seriously disturbed person to find amusement in the behavior indicated in the Oxfam report.

“Routinely, poultry workers say, they are denied breaks to use the bathroom. Supervisors mock their needs and ignore their requests; they threaten punishment or firing. Workers wait inordinately long times (an hour or more), then race to accomplish the task within a certain timeframe (e.g., ten minutes) or risk discipline.” Quote from Oxfam America report, “No Relief, Denial of Bathroom Breaks In The Poultry Industry”

For poultry workers having to come forward and speak about the goings on inside processing plants must be a humiliating experience. I, myself, wouldn’t want to have to tell anyone that I wear a diaper to work or that I defecate or urinate on myself while working. I can’t imagine!

Where are those who would ensure such a basic right? This type of abuse should not be tolerated by poultry company owners, stockholders, or consumers. Obviously, our government is aware of the situation, what is being done about it? We are supposed to be a civilized society. Is the processing of one more chicken, in the millions that are slaughtered every day, more important?

This subject started as a friendly debate and has turned in to a feeling of outrage. Again! I’m sure that I’ll write plenty more on this subject as I digest all that I’ve read. What does it take to end a vicious cycle of history repeating itself?